AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"What?I thought Billy was married."
"Divorced, but I'm not interested.He's not my type and I'd gain tons of weight dating him.Imagine me a fat, bored romance writer, not in love with her man."She gave a theatric swipe over her eyes."Oh, it's just so sad."
Henry snorted.
"Henry, I want your honest opinion."Steph braced herself for his answer, whatever it might be.He knew all about true love.
"Okay," he said hesitantly.
"Do you think I'm being too hard on Jason?He's a great guy and any woman would be lucky to have him."Laura came to mind.Stephanie mentally stomped on the teeny spark of jealousy that remained despite telling herself that this was what he needed.Not her, but a woman who only cared about making him happy.
"My nephew still cares for you after all this time.Jason would give you a fine life."Henry leaned forward, eyes on hers, and gave her the hard truth."You're a pretty girl and he'd do well to marry you, but if he's not the one, get out of his way."
She pressed a hand to her stomach to stop it from doing cartwheels."You're right.I know that's what I should do.It’s difficult not to think about what we had and focus on the future.It's always bad timing with us."
"In what way?"he spoke kindly and put a hand on hers.
"I have to see the world and I'll be leaving late spring or early summer."
"So soon?I'll miss you around here."Henry scratched his chin."Been thinking of retiring in a year or so.Sell this place and go somewhere warm.Phoenix, you say?"
"Yes.It's good for arthritis."
"Well, it won't be the same without you, but you gotta do what you gotta do."Henry moved his stiff legs to the side and pushed up."Don't wait until you're old like me.Dreams long gone.Only memories left."
Stephanie made a quick decision to leave the subject of the homeless man for another day."Thank you, Henry."She picked up the cups and cleaned the mess on the table.
"It's high time for me to go back to my office, and for you to drag in some customers."
"Yes, sir.It's off to work I go."She gave him a salute, then walked over and unlocked the door, staring out to see if the street was bustling with people.It wasn't.Mothers were still dropping their children off at school, some of them had jobs to go to, others did their work at home.Hopefully the moms would come in to browse before picking up the kids.
"Crazy girl," Henry muttered, as he and his dog meandered to the back room.
During the morning hours several customers dropped in, grabbed a coffee, and asked for a particular book.If it was in stock, she'd take it off the shelf and ring it up.Others she had to order so she’d get a phone number and promise to call as soon as it arrived.Everyone wanted the item by Christmas.The list was kept on file under the counter.
A little past noon, Billy made an appearance.As the baker, she knew his workday began at five a.m.on weekdays, and four on Saturdays.His baked goods were always in high demand.
"Hey, Billy.How's it going over there?We haven't had many customers yet."He was close to six feet, with a large solid build, a pleasant full face, and a sweet smile.His wife and their children lived in Connecticut after their divorce, and he rarely saw his two girls.
It was a sad state of affairs, but if he was looking for love, he'd come to the wrong place.
"We had a rush from half past seven to ten, then the last hour picked up again."Billy stepped closer."It runs like that.Peaks and valleys."
She laughed."Never thought of it that way, but you're right."She had Santa chocolates on the counter in lieu of candy canes and offered him one.
"Thanks, but no.I already had two croissants today.”Billy patted his stomach.“Ham and cheese for breakfast, and another one loaded with chicken salad for lunch."
They made small talk for a few minutes, then Billy did the unthinkable and asked her out for dinner.
"Oh, Billy, I'm sorry but I can't."Stephanie gave his large hand a light squeeze."I've told you before that my career is writing; if I don't get this book turned in on time, they won't pay me.I'd have to get another job on top of this one."She smiled to take the sting from the rejection.
"You could work at the bakery with me."He grinned, displaying his slightly crooked teeth.
"That's sweet, but all my life I've wanted to be a writer and now I'm doing it.Living my dream."
He seemed to realize that she wasn’t going to change her mind."Not quite what you expected, hey?"
Stephanie bristled and took a step back."I like it quite well, thank you very much." Billy turned around and walked out, letting the front door slam.
